Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §7035, sub-§11, as amended by PL 1987, c. 534, Pt. B, §§10 and 23, is further amended to read:

11. Promotion of hunting, fishing and camping. The commissioner may implement a program designed to promote fisheries and wildlife resources and attract hunters and fishermen to the State. As part of this program, the commissioner may reduce the price of certain types of licenses for specified periods of time to promote license sales for hunting and fishing in the State. This program may include coordination of activities between the public and private sectors and utilization of promotional missions, exhibits, brochures, technical assistance and expertise as necessary to develop and promote hunting, fishing and camping activities within the State. The commissioner shall coordinate this program with the activities of the Department of Economic and Community Development. Any purchases made as a result of that coordination shall must be by competitive bid.

Sec. 2. 12 MRSA §7035, sub-§16, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 667, Pt. A, §7, is amended to read:

16. Sale of general merchandise. The commissioner may engage in the selling and marketing of general merchandise products such as T-shirts, aprons, coffee mugs and greeting cards when the express purpose is to accommodate public demand and generate supplemental funds. These funds must be deposited in a dedicated account to be used only for the purposes described in this section. These funds may not be used for any costs associated with a quarterly magazine produced by the department.

Sec. 3. 12 MRSA §7035, sub-§19 is enacted to read:

19.__Dedicated accounts for accepting donations.__The commissioner may create dedicated accounts to accept money and may accept goods and services donated to the department to support specific programs carried out by the department.__Any money donated to the department in support of a specific program must be deposited into a dedicated account for the purpose of funding activities carried out by that program.

SUMMARY

This bill does the following 3 things to improve and enhance the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife's authority to market and promote department programs.